♪ this is "nightline." >> tonight, police shooting. the minneapolis traffic stop that turned deadly. the veteran officer on trial claiming she meant to draw her taser. the prosecution nearing an end. >> she betrayed her badge. >> as a family demands justice. >> i wanted to protect him because that's what mothers do. you protect your children. make sure that they're safe. plus, creative daredevils pushing themselves and boundaries to the limit. >> this is probaby one of the most dangerous things you can do on two wheels. >> we hit the track for the new motocross sport with its twists

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♪ thanks for joining us. president biden in western kentucky promising that the federal government will help until the job is done.

witnessing firsthand the devastation wrought by a powerful tornado that slammed into that region, killing more than 70, destroying thousands of homes. kentucky's governor, andy beshear, became emotional when he spoke before the president. >> i never thought in my life i'd be able to introduce the president, and i wish there were different circumstances. >> and mr. biden after visiting families who lost so much promised the federal government will aid in recovery. >> i intend to do whatever it takes, as long as it takes, as long as it takes to support your state, your local leaders, and as you recover and rebuild, because you will recover, and you will rebuild. we turn to the trial of former police officer kim potter, charged with manslaughter in the shooting death of 20-year-old daunte wright, a black man, during a routine traffic stop, whose death rocked the nation. potter doesn't dispute firing the fatal shot but claims it was an accident. abc's stephanie ramos is covering the trial.

>> oh my god! >> that guy was trying to take off with me in the car -- >> reporter: for the first time, those critical moments in the shooting of daunte wright revealed through new body camera footage. >> oh my god! >> reporter: an all too familiar scene, a former police officer, this time kim potter, standing trial for the fatal shooting of a black american. testifying in court, wright's heartbroken family. >> i wanted to protect him, because that's what mothers do. you protect your children. you make sure that they're safe. >> me and my wife's first. >> was this picture at your home? >> yes. >> was this not long before he passed away? >> right before he passed away. >> this case is about an officer who knew not to get it dead

wrong, but she failed to get it right. >> reporter: the defense saying potter, a 26-year veteran of the force, mistook her gun for her taser when she shot wright at a traffic stop in april, laying the blame on wright. >> all mr. wright had to do was stop. he was told he was arrested on a warrant. he resisted. >> reporter: potter is charged with first and second-degree manslaughter. she's pleaded not guilty to both charges. >> there's no do-over when you take a young man's life. >> reporter: the fatal shooting of daunte wright has sparked, once again, the conversation of race and policing in america. already feeling the seismic aftershocks from the death of george floyd one year earlier, just about ten miles away. amidst a racial reckoning, another black american killed by

>> that woman held that gun out in front of her for a long damn time. my nephew's blood is on y'all's heads! >> we had an officer who had been on the police force longer than wright had been alive who says she made a mistake, pulled her gun instead of her taser. a lot of people in the black community, but also white people who are questioning whether or not that was actually the case. >> reporter: nationwide, police pull over more than 50,000 drivers on average each day, with police stopping black drivers at higher rates than white drivers. wright's mom, katie bryant, tells abc news, the fear of police was real. >> know my son was scared. he's afraid of the police. and i just seen and heard the fear in his voice. and it should have never, ever escalated the way it did. >> reporter: wright called his mom after police pulled him over on april 11th, 2021, for an

expired registration and an air freshener hanging in his rear-view mirror, which is illegal in minnesota. officers discovered he had a warrant out for his arrest, issued after wright failed to appear in court in april following charges of carrying a firearm without a permit and running away from law enforcement. police attempt to take wright into custody. a struggle ensues as the 20-year-old tries to get back into his car. >> taser, taser, taser! >> reporter: instead of grabbing her taser, officer potter grabs her gun and fires. >> oh [ bleep ]! i just shot him! >> oh, wow. >> reporter: wright's car travels for about a block before crashing into another vehicle. police say paramedics attempted life-saving measures, but wright was pronounced dead at the scene. shown in the trial, new video of

the crash. >> get out of the car so we can help them! >> reporter: and its chaotic aftermath. >> don't worry about that, who else is in the car? >> reporter: watching the horror unfold in the passenger seat of wright's car, a young woman who had recently started dating right, elaiena albrecht-payton. >> pushing on his chest, called his name. he wasn't answering me. he was just -- gasping. >> and she faced the phone toward the driver's seat. and my son was laying there. he was unresponsive. he looked dead. >> reporter: wright's mom testifying about the moment she made her way to the crime scene.

>> is he alive? >> i do not know the condition -- >> are you guys serious? what are you talking to me for, then? >> did you see your son's body on the ground? >> i didn't want to believe that was my son laying there on the ground, but i could tell it was him because of his tennis shoes. >> emotional testimony in any case, especially in a murder case where the victim can't take the stand, is huge. the mother of dante wright and his girlfriend are also witnesses to what happened. and so those levels of emotion and also the testimony they can give to who he was and what happened is going to be huge for the prosecution. >> reporter: played in court for the first time, new police body cam video of potter after she shot wright, at times expressing suicidal thoughts. >> i want to kill myself. >> no, no, that's not happening, i'm giving you my gun, i'm going to hold on to yours, okay? >> reporter: the defense

painting potter's immediate reactions to the shooting as one filled with regret. >> kim potter, she understands use of force as a 26-year veteran. when she herself is on video saying "i'm going to prison, i should die," it's going to be very interesting to see how the defense tries to flip that to say, this was an accident. >> reporter: prosecutors pushed back calling potter's use of deadly force reckless. the differences between a gun and a taser were also on display for jurors. the prosecution raising questions about how potter could confuse her gear. >> the taser is yellow, the firearm is black. the taser has a stocky body to it compared to the glock handgun. the grip of the taser is shorter. >> reporter: the defense countering that despite those differences, there are some similarities between the two weapons. >> it's designed so that you pull a trigger, like a gun, right? >> they both have triggers, yes. >> it's designed so you aim at somebody, right? >> yes. >> how likely is it for police

officers to make a mistake like this? >> i think it's highly unlikely that a person would grab their gun when they mean to grab their taser. part of her being a veteran on the force, there's no reason why this type of mistake should happen. >> reporter: the defense also pointing to testimony from potter's former supervisor about her intentions. >> and you did say that good officers make good decisions, correct? you just testified to that? >> my hope is good officers make good decisions, yes. >> you did describe kimberly potter as a good officer? >> i did. >> reporter: the defense argued the use of deadly force is necessary in some situations. >> if there is an apparent risk of great bodily harm, can deadly force under the statute be used to effectuate an arrest or prevent an escape? >> yes. >> reporter: prosecutors saying that force was not justified here. and as the nation waits for potter to take the stand at her

criminal trial, tonight a family copes with the loss of a loved one gone too soon. >> i cannot accept that i lost my son. he's never coming back. i can't accept that. >> he just had his whole life taken away from him. we had our hearts pulled out of our chests. he was my baby. >> our thanks to stephanie. up next, we go inside the high-flying world of free ride motocross, one of the most daring sports on two wheels. people everywhere living with type 2 diabetes people everywhere living with type 2 diabetes are waking up to what's possible with rybelsus®. with rybelsus®. with rybelsus®. ♪ you are my sunshine ♪ ♪ you are my sunshine ♪ ♪ my only sunshine... ♪ rybelsus® is a pill that lowers rybelsus® is a pill that lowers rybelsus® is a pill that lowers blood sugar in three ways. increases insulin when you need it... increases insulin when you need it...

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♪ free ride motocross is not for the faint of heart. fans of the new sport say it's not only about taking risks, they call it freedom of expression. "nightline's" ashan singh takes us to the track. >> this is probably one of the most dangerous things you can do on two wheels. >> reporter: for vicki golden, one of the most skilled bikers in the world, this park in the middle of rural kansas is something out of her wildest dreams. >> there's maybe two jumps that don't have a lot of consequences. >> the fact that a course like this exists in real life and not a video game? this is like a dream come true for them.

welcome to the world of free ride motocross, a sport where creative expression is the name of the game. what actually is free riding? >> the closest thing i would consider it as would be more or less like a street skater. you can kind of go out and do whatever you want. >> reporter: freeriding is the newest discipline in motocross. using skills from all of the sport's different specialties. encouraging riders to pull off the gnarliest tricks and get the biggest air. all for the shot and bragging rights. >> i've always wanted to just build my version of a dirt skate park. >> reporter: tyler beriman is a ten-times xgames medalist and the dream child behind this course. >> all these jumps and lips and landings and everything is perfect. you can kind of take one jump, with creativity and thinking outside the box, you can have one takeoff and four different landings. >> that was crazy!

unreal, man. >> reporter: tyler invited some of the sport's best to compete in its second annual event called red bull imagination. these riders aren't here to race, but to push the limits of what can be done on a dirt bike. where judges will score these athletes on their creativity. >> we used to all be racers. we got kind of put in a box. we didn't like racing, we wanted to create content and do it our way. >> reporter: we were invited to watch these elite athletes practice on the red bull course just days before the big event. four-time x games medalist and world record holder vicki golden is the only woman competing. being one of the only women in the field, growing up did you feel accepted or kind of like an outsider? >> kind of one of those things you grew up not knowing. whoever i'm riding around, that's who i want to challenge myself against. you know how it is. you want to one-up your friends. unfortunately, my friends are the best in the world, so i'm just chasing them and trying to make sure they don't leave me

behind on the level of riding. >> reporter: over the past decade, the southern california native has become one of the most recognizable and talked about riders in the sport. >> she comes out here, she's throwing down just as hard or harder than half of the boys. >> reporter: after breaking her foot trying to land one of the jumps on last year's course, she's become. and one of the first riders out testing the jumps this year. what got you back on the bike, ready to get back there this year? >> i think the first thing that got me back on the bike was two plates and a couple of screws to bolt that thing back together. just time, we wanted to keep having fun on the bike. >> this is a dangerous sport. >> the risk is unfortunately always there. we always say it's not if it's going to happen, it's when. >> reporter: motocross veteran ryan sipes has garnered the nickname "the general." >> i'm less of a specialist, more april generalist. >> reporter: supercross to flat track, ryan has nearly done it all in his quest to become the

most well-rounded biker of all-time. freeriding is next on his list. ryan, you're one of the older riders here. this seems a young man's game in a lot of ways. why do this? this seems really dangerous, and you've already done it all, right? >> i don't feel 37. i feel 22. i may hurt a little bit more than i did when i was 22. all these jumps are scary, but feeling that, doing it anyway, overcoming that, is like -- it's a special feeling. >> take me into that moment when you're on the bike action you've got that helmet on, it's just you on the track? >> trying to focus, trying to breathe, stay present where i'm at on the track. my razorback ground, racer mindset, helps me. >> reporter: danger can be kind of a fuel for these riders. an adrenaline hit that helps them do the impossible. >> that was sick. that was ryan sipes who just got that crazy air.

yo! i know he said he's a generalist but he seems like he's just as good as anybody out here. as we're watching practice runs -- we catch ryan bailing mid-jump. >> yo! shoot, yo, he fell, he fell. >> reporter: just like that in middle of a fun day of freeriding, the course falls silent. >> he's up? ryan, we saw you take a nasty fall, what happened, man? >> when i hit the back brake to bring the front end down a little, it stalled. when the back wheel stops, you go nose-down. and i was kind of -- instincts kicked in. i jumped off. probably 35 foot up in the air there. so it hurt a lot when i crashed. >> yeah, when you landed. >> when i landed, it was a blessing, the bike hit behind me. right before i made impact, it pushed me out. i still hit hard, but i think it saved my feet and ankles. so i'm not broken. >> reporter: the next day is the big event, and ryan, despite his

fall, decides to compete. he ultimately places fifth in the competition. >> it's the most fun week i've ever had on a motorcycle. >> reporter: vicki came in last place, but completing the course without injury this year was a victory in itself. >> i survived this year. i'm not going through the airport on crutches this year. so i'm stoked to be able to come here, walk away, and we had so much fun. >> reporter: for pros like ryan and vicki, the risk is worth the reward. nothing beats getting big air. >> push it to the limit every day. >> our thanks to ashan. up next, remembering a pioneering author, teacher, and visionary. bell hooks. o man, that's a whole lot of wrinkly at least my shoes look good! looking good start with bounce wrinkleguard, the megasheet designed to prevent wrinkles in the dryer. kim is now demonstrating her congestion. save it slimeball.

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♪ finally tonight, ground breaking author, educator, activist bell hooks has died. hooks wrote extensively on race and gender and was considered by many to be one of the most influential thinkers of her time. a friend saying she was a giant, no nonsense person, who lived by her own rules and spoke her own

truth in a time when black people and women especially didn't feel empowered to do that. bell hooks was 69. rest in peace. that's "nightline." you can watch all our full episodes on hulu. see you back here same time tomorrow. thanks for staying up with us. good night, america. nespresso vertuo. redifining coffee. with one touch. precision brewing technology. a smooth crema. for an exceptional coffee every day. nespresso vertuo. what coffee is meant to be.